UPDATE June 30, 2021 – Despite yesterday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision regarding the CDC’s federal eviction moratorium, REALTORS® in Illinois must follow the state eviction moratorium, said Illinois REALTORS® General Counsel Betsy Urbance.

The U.S. Supreme Court, by a 5-4 vote, upheld the stay, keeping the nationwide eviction moratorium in place, while saying that the CDC lacked authority to implement the ban. The ruling means the federal moratorium will expire at the end of July.

Last week, Illinois’ eviction moratorium was extended through July 24.

The federal eviction ban was first issued in September 2020 during President Trump’s term and was extended by President Biden several times through the end of July. With the support of NAR, the Georgia and Alabama Associations of REALTORS® challenged the orders in federal court. In May, a U.S. federal judge sided with housing providers, ruling the moratorium unconstitutional.  However, the judge issued a stay of her ruling pending appeal.

“This is a massive victory for property rights,” said NAR President Charlie Oppler. “For more than a year, mom-and-pop property owners have been pushed toward financial ruin as they upkeep their properties and pay their taxes and mortgages with no income of their own. With the pandemic waning and the economy improving, it is time to restore the housing sector to its healthy, former function. Property owners also deserved this absolute clarity from our federal court system regarding property rights in America to avoid similar financial harm in the future.”

“This ruling keeps in place certainty for tenants for another month while bringing clarity to struggling housing providers. It is now critical that the nearly $50 billion in rental assistance NAR helped secure gets out to those who need it most,” Oppler said.

On Fri., June 25, 2021 Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker extended his moratorium on convictions for another 30 days, or until July 24, 2021. Consistent with his Executive Order on June 11, 2021, the moratorium no longer prohibits law enforcement from enforcing eviction orders against persons who are considered “Non-Covered” persons under his Executive Order.

The following information was posted on June 14, 2021: State and local law enforcement authorities now can enforce eviction orders that were sought before March 20, 2020, under a change to Illinois’ eviction moratorium that went into effect on Friday.

Then, later this month on June 25, authorities also can start enforcing eviction orders entered against tenants who are “Non-Covered” persons under the Governor’s existing Executive Order. The remaining provisions prohibiting enforcement of eviction orders against “Covered Persons,” unless the tenant is found to pose a direct threat to the health or safety of other tenants or an immediate and severe risk to property, remain in place.

The following information was posted on May 29, 2021:

On May 29, Illinois’ eviction moratorium was extended until June 26, 2021 in an Executive Order issued May 28, 2021 by Illinois Gov. J.B Pritzker.

The Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA) is now taking applications from landlords for emergency rental payment assistance through the 2021 Illinois Rental Payment Program, funded by federal relief dollars. Applicants are eligible for a grant of up to $25,000 to help cover past due rent payments resulting from the COVID pandemic. Specific details on the program can be found on IHDA’s website.

As more people become vaccinated and unemployment assistance claims continue to fall, Gov. Pritzker has indicated that he is reviewing the moratorium for any potential changes that he feels may be appropriate. Illinois REALTORS® will continue to monitor and provide any updates if and when the situation changes.

The following information was last updated on May 29, 2021:

Details of Illinois’ Moratorium on Evictions

When Gov. Pritzker issued the latest Executive Order, the language of the moratorium remained unchanged from the previous month.

In addition to the state moratorium, the federal moratorium remains in place through the end of June.  As a reminder, while both the state moratorium and federal moratorium remain in place the state moratorium should be followed in Illinois, as it is more restrictive than the federal moratorium.

Like his previous Executive Order, before serving tenants with a Notice of Termination of Tenancy, landlords must deliver to tenants a declaration that tenants may then execute and deliver back to landlords to trigger the protections of the moratorium. Under the declaration, the tenant states that:

  1. the individual either (i) expects to earn no more than $99,000 in annual income for calendar year 2020 (or no more than $198,000 if filing a joint tax return), (ii) was not required to report any income in 2019 to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or (iii) received an Economic Impact Payment pursuant to Section 2001 of the CARES Act;
  2. the individual is unable to make a full rent or housing payment due to a COVID-19 related hardship including, but not limited to: substantial loss of income, loss of compensable hours of work or wages, or an increase in out-of-pocket expenses directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic;
  3. the individual is using best efforts to make timely partial payments that are as close to the full payment as the individual’s circumstances may permit, taking into account other non-discretionary expenses; and
  4. eviction would likely render the individual homeless – or force the individual to move into and live in close quarters in a new congregate or shared living setting – because the individual has no other available housing options.

Like the previous Executive Order, the most recent Executive Order, includes the procedure that landlords must follow when serving their tenants with the declaration. Landlords must provide the declaration to their tenants at least five days prior to the issuance of a notice of termination of tenancy. The service of this declaration must also now conform with the service requirements of 735 ILCS 5/9-211.

Like the previous Executive Order, the most recent Executive Order also includes a new separate class of tenants, specifically those tenants who do not owe rent, who will not be required to provide a declaration to their landlords in order to be protected by the moratorium. Section 7 states:

A person or entity may not commence a residential eviction action pursuant to or arising under 735 ILCS 5/9-101 et seq. against a tenant who does not owe rent unless the tenant poses a direct threat to the health and safety of other tenants or an immediate and severe risk to property. A tenant shall not be required to provide a declaration if they are covered by this section.